Punctuation
by M.Koffe
Summary: Turning eightneen means a lot of things. Say Anything AU.
1. Chapter 1

**I'm still planning on writing a lot of other things that happen before this, and I've got tons of those drafts sitting in my files. I was just more inspired to finish this one. **

**Anyway, I hope you like this first chapter, thank you. :3**

* * *

Awkward did not even completely describe their first sexual encounter.

Dick was out of practice.

Jason had never practiced.

They were in Gotham city again, Jason had not been there since he was sixteen and now he was less than minutes away from turning eighteen. He was nervous, because he knew what turning eighteen meant.

They were going to be living in Gotham for quite a while because the circus was going to take anywhere between six months to a year reorganizing the show list and trying to find new performers.

They had arrived at their new place late in the evening, and tried to get a majority of the boxes in the house before it got too late. They did not have a lot of furniture, so they had spent the day looking for some. Jason even bought some school supplies, he was going to attend school in Gotham but only senior year. Mary had been homeschooling him, and she had done the same with Dick when he was younger. Since they were going to be stationary for a long time it was decided that Jason should attend public school – or try too. If he did not like it he could try and test out to get a GED, but Jason wanted the experience.

It felt nice to set down his new backpack on the floor, even though it was empty. He felt like it was the closest he had ever been to being 'normal' in society's standards. He was living in a house in Gotham city, with parents and a brother – everything felt normal and he was at ease.

There was no blinds or curtains over the widow, which allowed light from the outside to sneak in. Jason eyed his room. Sitting against the wall farthest from the door was a mattress and a few feet away from it was a box that contained the bed frame that was yet to be assembled. Jason opened the box that contained a lamp, he plugged it in and screwed in a light bulb. Light suddenly bloomed throughout the room, and Jason began to rummage through his things to find his sleeping pills and a book to read.

As he searched, Dick stood in the doorway, "Hey." he greeted, as Jason's cat maneuvered in between his legs and into the room.

Jason glanced up and smiled, acknowledging his boyfriend's presence. He did not say anything, but continued to look through the plastic box.

Dick continued to speak, "I was wondering if you want to sleep in my room tonight." he suggested. The pair had not slept in separate beds for a long time and were not planning on starting that anytime soon.

Not to mention midnight was approaching.

Jason found the book he was looking for and set it out along with a bottle of pills, "Sounds good, meet you there in a bit."

Dick nodded, he turned around and walked back down the hall and into his room. Jason watched longingly as Dick left, he wanted sex. He wanted it so badly, which was strange because he had no idea how he could want something he had never experienced.

He was scared...no nervous. Sweat was building up in his palms, and he was afraid of embarrassing himself. He had never done it before, how was he supposed to know what to do?

Yeah, he and Dick had messed around. Kissing and blowing each other like desperate porn stars. But that was not penetration. Scratch that, Jason was scared not nervous.

Fucking scared.

He stood up, and padded over to the window. He gazed out at the glittering lights of the city, his reflection faint against the glass. He certainly was not the same person he was the last time he was in Gotham. Physically, and emotionally.

With a sigh he turned off the lamp, and made his way into Dick's room. It was a few square feet bigger than his, and closer to the main room of the house. A poster of Superman was hung up on his closet door, and his TV showed the pause screen of a video game. It looked like Dick had tried to set up his bed, but stopped halfway. Jason glanced at the pile of wood, then looked up at Dick.

"You ready?" Dick asked as he switched the TV off. Jason was surprised to see that he looked just as nervous as he felt. Dick's hands were trembling, and there was an edge in his voice.

Dick was surprised at how calm Jason appeared. Of course he looked calm, this was something he had been waiting for. Jason was minutes away from turning eighteen, minutes. Dick did not know that Jason was masking all the apprehension. It was what he did best in situations like this, try put on a brave face and pretend like everything is okay.

Biting his lip, Dick peered over at the clock, then back at Jason. He was afraid that he was not up to standard. It had been so long since he had done anything for anyone and he was fearful that he had become a little out of practice. He wanted Jason to experience the best and he was going to try to show him it.

It started like it usually does. Intense making out, and they did not even start on the bed. Dick had pinned Jason up against the door, which closed thanks to him pushing against it.

With a heavy breath, Dick whispered, "Happy Birthday..."

This was familiar, this was an act they preformed constantly. Jason wrapped his arms around Dick's lower back, fanning his fingers against heated skin.

After a feverish exchange of kisses and scratching, licking, biting...Dick grabbed a bottle of lube that he had hidden in between the mattress and wall.

Once Jason saw that, he began to panic and he hoped that Dick could not tell. It was happening, this shit was going to happen. Jason was worried that he was so scared, he could not believe how scared he was. He had faced death before, and he was afraid of this?

Dick began to prepare Jason, and as he inserted his fingers that were covered in lube he noticed him twitch uncomfortably. Dick had been with Jason long enough to read his movements, he could tell there was something wrong.

Locking eyes with his partner, Dick whispered, "Are you sure you're ready?"

Jason let out a shaky breath, he did not say no, because he could not justify why.

Dick knew something was up, "If you need me stop, tell me."

Jason nodded and allowed Dick to proceed. It was electrifying, the air seemed to have lit up as soon as Dick's cock began to slide into him. His heart beat quickened, he suddenly felt very hot and everything was happening so fast – too fast. Before he could stop himself from speaking he muttered, "...Please...Dick stop...stop."

Gasping, Dick immediately pulled out. He felt dread, and worry, what if he hurt Jason, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" he apologized. "Did I hurt you, oh my god, are you okay?"

Jason sat up, half of his legs were off the mattress and on the cold wooden floor, "N-no, I just..I...I don't know." he could feel his heart running a million miles in his chest. "I just - I panicked. Don't be sorry."

Change is hard. If they had sex their relationship would be on a different level. Jason was afraid he would not be able to give Dick the new amount of love their relationship would require to continue to thrive. A part of him was afraid he was going to be unworthy, and he found himself thinking how he did when he was sixteen.

It was difficult for Jason to be so intimate on the level that they were about to enter.

"I love you, Dick." Jason's voice was low, and strained. "And I'm sorry...I just I – I got scared."

It was good to know that he did not hurt him, Dick felt like a heavy weight had been lifted off his shoulders. "That's okay." Dick reached around hugged Jason. "It will be okay, when you're ready we'll get there."

Jason nodded, feeling embarrassed, "I...I um...need to be alone."

"Whatever you need," Dick grabbed Jason's boxers and handed it to him. "I love you too, even if I have to wait another two or three years for you to be ready I will." he vowed.

Smiling, Jason slipped on the boxers and left. As he closed the door behind him he spotted his cat sitting outside the door.

He knelt down and picked her up, her one golden brown eye stared into his. "You eavesdropping, Bandit?"

Bandit tilted her head to the side, and meowed. She was a young gray cat with only one working eye and walked with a limp from her back leg. He carried her to his room and set her down on down.

Dick was alone in his bedroom, sitting on his mattress, trying to figure out what happened. He felt like within past few minutes their relationship had suddenly become fragile. He should have backed off when he felt how tense Jason was.

He needed to relax, and calm down and think. With a sigh Dick left to go take a shower.

"So ummm...that was a good first try right?" Jason talked to Bandit, he sat down beside her.

The former stray cat peered up at him, and meowed.

Jason did not speak cat, and therefore did not respond when the animal stated her opinion. He sighed, "Dick is the most fucking amazing man ever, and I'm sure if he wanted he...errr... if I was or...um..." his thoughts were jumbled. He liked it, he liked the way Dick glided his hands, and how his fingers dug into a place that was new but that did not change the fact that Jason was not ready.

He wanted it but he was afraid of what it meant.

Jason reached for his pill bottle and began to decide how much of it he wanted to take. He never took more than prescribed, and most of the time he took only half of that. It was teenage angst that made him take the full prescribed amount.

Jason grabbed Bandit and stared right at her, their eyes level, "If there is a fire promise you'll drag me out of the house because I am not dying before I fuck with Dick, got it?"

The cat said nothing, and Jason set her back down on the floor, before standing up. Hoping to talk to Dick before the medication took effect he dragged his feet down the hall only to realize Dick was no longer in his room and the shower was running. Meaning Dick was taking a shower.

Feeling his body become heavy, he laid down on Dick's mattress. He hugged Dick's pillow and fell asleep to his scent.

Dick was surprised to see Jason knocked out in his room clutching his pillow. It was cute, seeing that despite what had just happened that Jason was confident enough to come back. He laid beside him and kissed him on the forehead, "Good night, Little Wing."


	2. Chapter 2

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter. :3 It's okay if you dont. XD I'm always open for critizims and what not. **

* * *

Chapter II

Jason work up early the next morning, and like every morning he saw Dick snoozing quietly beside him. He stared at him for a few moments, admiring the outline of his face, and how each black strand of hair fell perfectly on top of each other in a beautiful yet disheveled manner. A soft smile twitched on his lips and slowly he sat up to peek out the window. The sun was not out yet.

His eyes wondered up to the alarm clock,which told him it was around around six in the morning. He tiptoed around the mattress to his room where after some searching he found a pile of sticky notes and pen. He scribbled on the neon yellow paper before returning to Dick's room and gently pressing it into his forehead.

He felt bad for leaving, but he wanted to spend his birthday with someone he had not seen for a long time. Jason tossed on a green shirt and a pair of black jeans, then sneaked out.

A few hours later Dick woke up and was surprised to see a sticky note attached to his forehead and his boyfriend missing. He was not really surprised that Jason was not in bed, there was only a handful of times that he can remember when he woke up before Jason. Making a sound that was between a yawn and grunt he reached up and grabbed the sticky note, _Went to the Cemetery. -Jason. _Dick knew Jason and he knew the only reason why he did not wait for him to wake up so they could go together was because he wanted to be alone. However, sometimes being alone is not the right choice, and Dick knew he had to go follow him.

Dick stood up and stumbled to the kitchen holding the note in his hand. Mary was in the kitchen, humming a song and making some coffee. "Morning..." Dick greeted her, sleepily.

"Good morning, Richard." Mary smiled up at him, while pouring some coffee in a cup. "Is Jason still asleep? I was hoping to make him a good breakfast for his birthday."

Dick handed her the note, her eyes skimmed quickly over it, "Do you think we should go meet him there?"

Dick nodded, "Yeah."

Holding a bouquet of flowers Jason entered the cemetery. He was nervous about seeing his mother. It had been so long since he had visited her yet his feet remembered where to go. There was some new headstones and new grave markers but the path stayed the same.

As far as Jason could tell, there was only one other person in the cemetery. It was a boy a few years younger than him with pale skin and dark black hair. The boy glanced up at him, and his eyes were so blue it caught Jason off guard. From the look in the boy's eyes and the name on the stone Jason figured the kid had lost his father. As he walked passed the teenager, Jason clasped his shoulder firmly, and then continued to walk away.

Jason found his mother's grave, and as soon as his eyes saw her name he froze. He stood there for an hour, or maybe it was two. Despite the wait, he found the words, "Hey Mom..." he set down the flowers. "I know its been a long time...and I -" he could feel it happening a sudden rush of emotion was threatening to overcome him.

Afraid if he became too emotional he was going to fall, he knelt down and with a choked sob admitted, "I've missed you so much."

The tears rolled down his cheek, because he missed her and he wanted her to be there. He wanted to hug her, and he wanted to tell her all the things he'd seen on road and tell her about Dick but he could not. She would never know any of the things he had done or the people that he had met and he wished she was alive.

He heard someone step behind and kneel, he figured it was the boy he had recently encountered, but when he looked back he realized it was Mary, with John and Dick who were not far behind her. Mary did not say anything, instead she wrapped her arms around Jason's shoulders. He broke at her touch, he sobbed into the base of her neck and weakly wrapped his arms around her.

"Shhhh...it's okay, it's okay Jason." Mary told him, battling the urge to cry herself.

"I miss her so much..." he revealed, in a torn voice.

Dick hated seeing other people cry, especially Jason. He turned away, and tried to hide his face by looking down. John put an arm around his shoulders, and whispered, "Remember, you have to be strong for him."

"...Yeah."

After Jason had calmed down, Mary and John lingered for a little longer before leaving him alone with Dick.

Dick had brought a blanket with him, and laid it out. He tried to ignore the awkwardness in the air, because sex last night failed and Jason was not speaking. Dick offered Jason his hand and guided him onto the yellow blanket. He wrapped his arms around the younger man's waist. Jason relaxed a little, and he could feel Dick's strong chest press against his back.

"I wonder what it's like to die." Jason thought out loud, morbidly.

The statement caught Dick of guard, and for a few moments he did not answer."You're asking the wrong person, because I have never died." he responded, speaking in a low soft tone. "You did, you don't remember anything of that?"

Jason sighed, "Nope, but I do remember waking up really scared but..." he twisted around and laid a chaste kiss on Dick's cheek. "You fixed that."

Dick blushed, and glanced down at the grass, it felt strange knowing that were on top of a casket, "I wish I could have met her."

Hearing that almost made Jason want to cry again, but he blinked away the tears. He was always sensitive when it came to talking about his mother.

"I wish you could have met her too."

Dick gazed at the plaque, and said, "Mrs. Todd, I'm going to give something special to your son for his birthday, but I figured it might be better if I give to him right now and in front of you, maybe I can get your approval?"

Jason moved off of Dick so he could see him clearly, he was curious about what Dick was doing.

"Since you're going to start school soon, I wanted you to have this so everyone knows that you're taken." from his pocket, Dick slipped out a small cardboard box and handed it to Jason.

Heart pounding, Jason took the box and glanced at his mother, then back at Dick. He opened it and inside was simple bronze colored ring.

"It's a promise ring."

Jason blushed fiercely, and wrapped his arms around Dick. The pair of them tumbled down into the blanket.

"Hey, what do you think, Mom?" Jason asked her, placing another kiss on Dick's cheek. "You think I should accept this ring?"

Dick laughed, and wrapped his arms around Jason when a robin fluttered down from one of the trees and landed on the blanket right next to them. The bird hopped closer to the pair, tweeting and singing. Jason suddenly felt at ease, and peered down and Dick, "I think I'm going to take that as a yes." "Good." Dick kissed Jason, and smiled.

They stayed at the cemetery until sunset, and down the sidewalk holding hands. On the way home they passed a newspaper stand, the front page on most of the local newspapers were about Batman and Batgirl. A few headlines were about Catwoman too, and her partner Stray.

"I just got a text from Calvin," Dick caught Jason's attention. "He says he has a present for you, you wanna stop buy his apartment on the way?"

"Ummm, yeah, okay."


	3. Chapter 3

**This has a plot, I swear. :3 I'm buliding up to it. XD**

**Anyway, here is another chapter. I hope you enjoy. :D**

* * *

Jason had never been more nervous than going to school on the first day. He felt so out of place, and restless. Time seemed go on forever. Girls and a handful of boys stared at him and batted their eyes, and that made him self conscious. He was taller than everyone so he felt as if everyone was staring at him which made him feel insecure. His choice of wearing long sleeves to cover up his scars was the right choice, he did not want any more attention.

At lunch, Jason found himself alone, which was fine because everyone else was loud and annoying and he wanted nothing to do with them. Instead he found comfort in texting Dick. Dick was with Calvin Rose, and they were looking for work in the city. Not that they needed a job, the money they were making from the circus was enough to sustain them for a long time. Dick needed to be doing something, he was too energetic to sit around all day and wait for Jason to come home from school.

While waiting for a response, Jason happened to glance up from his phone and his eyes met with bright blue eyes resting on pale skin. It was the boy from the cemetery. He was speaking with some other teenagers, but as soon as he saw Jason he left them in what looked like mid conversation.

"Is everything okay?" the boy asked, recalling their encounter.

Jason let out a breath and an attempted a smile, "Yeah, what about you?"

"It's been hard." the boy admitted.

They were two different people, from completely different families and different lives but all because they had both lost someone they knew what the other was going through.

"May I, um..."

Jason patted the ground next to him, motioning for the black haired teenager to sit, "It doesn't get better – um, hey, I don't know your name."

"I'm Timothy Drake-Wayne." Tim said as he took a seat next to Jason.

"I'm Jason Todd-Grayson." he introduced himself. Tim's eyes went wide when Jason told him the second part of his last name, but he ignored it and continued speaking. "I'm new at this school, in fact, this my first time in public school since...um..."

Understanding the point Jason was trying to make, Tim decided, "Yeah, I'll help you." he sounded a little too enthusiastic about wanting to help Jason, but he went along with it.

The two compared their schedules, learning that they had their last two classes together. Photography and Medicine/Health Care.

Photography sounded like an easy course, Jason figured it would be no problem. However the medical course was going to be a problem, the only reason why he was even eligible to take such an advanced class was because he tested into it. Not only that, but the class was only offered during the last period of the day, so it was difficult for many students to get into it. The teacher was an actual doctor too, her name was Dr. Sheila Haywood. She would teach the class, and then go to the hospital to begin her shift.

Jason did not like the way she looked at him, once she got to his name she stammered and did not look happy. He passed a note to Tim, saying, "I don't think she is going to like me."

Being the first day of class, did not mean that there was not going to homework. Jason was locked in his room, and Dick had his back to his boyfriend's door waiting for him to finish. Dick was playing with Bandit, the young cat playfully hopped over his legs chasing a string.

After a while the cat curled up on Dick's lap, and began to snooze quietly. Dick himself was beginning to fall asleep but soon the door squeaked open. Standing in the door way was Jason, "How long have you been out here?"

"Since we got home." Dick admitted.

Jason laughed, and pulled Dick on his feet. Bandit hopped off and gave Jason an angry meow for disturbing him and ran off. "That's sweet of you." Jason yanked Dick into his room and shut the door.

Dick sat down on the bed, and was tackled by Jason. All day Jason had wanted to kiss Dick, and now that they were alone, it was the perfect time. He pressed his lips against Dick's, which ignited that feeling of butterflies fluttering through his veins. Dick kissed him back, running his hands under Jason's shirt.

Jason's hands clung to the waistband of Dick's pants, inching them down. Dick bucked into Jason, and he gave off a muffled moan into his lover's mouth. Breaking the kiss to catch a breath, Dick made his way down the side of Jason's face, venturing down into his neck.

Once Jason undid Dick's pant's, he latched his hands on his lover's shirt, tightly holding him. Jason's heart galloped a little too fast, he was nervous still.

Suddenly there was a bang on the door, "Dick? Dick are you in there?" it was Mary.

"Y-yeah!" Dick called back, jumping off Jason and trying to pull up his pants while not tripping on himself as he ran toward the door. "Mom?" Mary peeked over Dick's shoulder, and crossed her arms, "Is he distracting you?"

Shaking his head, Jason walked over to the doorway, "No, I finished my homework for the night." he grabbed Dick's hand, "I've been wanting to show him something since we got here, is it okay for us to go out?" Mary smiled, "Just be sure to be back before midnight," she reminded, "You have school in the morning."

"Okay."

Once Jason had pulled Dick outside and they were sitting in the truck, he asked, "Where are going?"

"You want to see what the city looks like from the tops of the buildings, at night?" Jason inquired. "I was too sick to show you the last time we were here. I figured now is the perfect time."

Dick kissed Jason on the cheek, and started the vehicle.

It was surprising to see how at home Jason was, running down ally's and climbing the sides of buildings. It took everything Dick had in him to keep up. Seeing how beautifully, and gracefully Jason hopped from building to building did make Dick want to stop chasing him and admire his silhouette against the black backdrop of the night sky.

Jason glanced back, keeping an eye on Dick to make sure he did not slip or anything. He did look like he was struggling, but that was something Jason was expecting of his boyfriend. Dick was used to preforming in well lit areas, where he can easily see what he's grabbing on too, and where he is going.

Suddenly, Jason stopped on a familiar yet foreign building.

Before Dick completely halted, Jason wrapped one arm around Dick's lower back, and another behind his knees. In a whirl, Jason lifted Dick, bridal style and kissed him.

Once the kiss was broken, Jason stared down at Dick, smiling, "This is where we had our first kiss."

Dick blushed so hard that even in the dim lighting Jason could see the vivid pink light up his cheeks.

So much has changed since they were up there the last time. More than the fact that it was day and now it was night. Their relationship had changed from back then. Dick was uncertain, and Jason was alone.

Slowly Dick set his feet down, and they held hands eying the beauty of the scenery. The artificial light of the city glowed bright against the cold steel that held them together. Dick set his head on Jason's shoulder, admiring the beauty.

Dick was speechless, the sight amazed him, "This is...wow..."

"I know, right." Jason squeezed Dick's hand tighter, "It's more beautiful with you here with me."


End file.
